He also administered and organized the company's involvement in the many cooperative campaigns conducted with Philip Morris and the Tobacco Institute in lobbying the United States Congress to block anti-smoking legislation.

Griscom subcontracted the administration of this "sound-science" operation to Jody Powell (ex-press secretary to President Jimmy Carter) and Sheila Tate (First Lady Nancy Reagan's adviser) at Powell-Tate.

Griscom's PR staff attempted to both promote and ridicule the idea that coffee could cause cancer via Milloy's junk-science web pages and op-ed articles planted in newspapers.

[13] Griscom's communications and media division of RJR also hired state and federal lobbyists, planted ghost-written articles and letters to the editor in major newspapers and magazines[14] and promoted seemingly normal tours by comedians, musicians, artists, etc.

This led to a February 1998 Master Settlement Agreement, in which the tobacco industry agreed to pay hundreds of millions of dollars in compensation for Medicaid costs associated with smoking to avoid charges under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).